We can define a healthcare provider as the
individual who has state authorization to practice health services, such as
physicians, nurses, clinical social workers, midwives and clinical
psychologists (Barnes & Fitzgibbons, 1992). They are responsible for
working in government-authorized institutions like nursing homes, primary care
centers, and hospitals. In some circumstances, healthcare workers are allowed
to run private clinics. It’s safe to say that the healthcare system can get
impacted if they do not perform their duties efficiently and professionally.
This system incorporates all activities related to promotion, maintenance, and
restoration of the patient’s health via caregivers and healthcare experts. The
healthcare provider I have selected for this paper is Children’s Healthcare of
Atlanta’s doctors. This hospital is situated in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a
famous hospital in the city and is best known to provide affordable care to the
patients. The entire team is trained, qualified and experienced, and they have
specialized in caring children under the age of 20 years old; doctors are especially
responsible for looking after the patients and supervising nurses and other
junior staff. The environment of this hospital is kid-friendly, and the latest
equipment and technologies are being used to fulfill the requirements of all
patients. The doctors of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta have been praised the
world over for their hard work and dedication, and the hospital itself is
ranked 6th on the Pediatrics National Best Hospitals in the U.S.
The
Direct Impact of Marketing for the Healthcare Provider
As already mentioned, I have chosen the
doctors working in this hospital. The direct impact of marketing is a
competitive advantage that the hospital has to offer. Children’s Healthcare of
Atlanta provides a sustainable and productive environment to all of the staff
members, with doctors paying utmost attention to the physical and mental health
of patients. There are only a few hospitals that are competing with the doctors
of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at this stage, such as Augusta University
Health and Emory University. However, the kind of services they provide is not
as effective and well-versed as is provided by the medical staff of Children’s
Healthcare of Atlanta. Thus, we can say that marketing has a direct effect on
the financial performance of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, thanks to its
doctors for bringing the hospital to the peaks of success and for serving
patients day and night so that they get recovered from illnesses at a fast
speed.
Although the nursing staff is able to provide
a competitive advantage, the doctors act as a backbone when it comes to
improving the quality of care (2016). Typically, reducing the number of nurses
lead hospitals to experience financial loses, but in case of Children’s
Healthcare of Atlanta, the doctors are believed to continue working hard even
in the absence of nursing staff. As far as the direct impact of marketing is
concerned, we can say that just like other hospitals or medical centers,
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta has its own vision, mission statement, and
strategies to operate. Doctors are capable of providing the best treatment
facilities and medications to patients; for this purpose, they take special
care of evidence-based practice. Sometimes their services are promoted
individually in order to attract more and more clients toward the hospital and
to strengthen the financial system.
A
Strategy for the Healthcare Provider to Determine the Utilization of the
Products and Services
The strategic plan for the doctors of
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta is that they should shake hands with the
management in order to update the mission and vision statements once a while;
both of these statements should be understandable by the patients and their
families so that they keep their expectations to a good level (Bridgeman).
Next, the focus should be on meeting the opportunities and challenges of the
ever-changing world of healthcare. For this purpose, doctors, nurses and other
staff members should make the wise use of technology and should be provided
with regular training in order to help them improve their performance.
A
Marketing Strategy for the Healthcare Provider
The best marketing strategy for Children’s
Healthcare of Atlanta is social media. They can promote their services via
Facebook and Twitter and can publish ads in newspapers or online outlets in
order to get noticed by a maximum number of people. There are plenty of other
ways too to market the services of the hospital, but social media is currently
the best, easiest and most affordable way to ring in newcomers.
Three
Ways the Healthcare Provider Could Shape the Buying Decisions of the Customer
The three ways are recognition and awareness
of needs, evaluation of alternatives, and post-purchase evaluation. The
recognition and awareness of needs mean doctors and nurses should diagnose the
illness, identify the core problem and then keep each other informed about how
to plan care. They need to bear in mind that customers need a quick and
reliable solution to their problems. The evaluation of alternatives is done
when the available treatment options are insufficient. Thirdly, post-purchase
evaluation is all about staying in touch with patients once they have been
discharged from the hospital in order to see whether they are living a healthy
life or not.
References
Barnes, N. G., &
Fitzgibbons, D. A. (1992). Strategic Marketing for Charitable
Organizations. Health Marketing Quarterly, 9(3-4),
103-114. doi:10.1300/j026v09n03_10
Improving Patient Outcomes
With Oral Heart Failure Medications. (2016). Home Healthcare Now,34(5).
doi:10.1097/nhh.0000000000000415
Bridgeman, J. (n.d.). Child-Centred
Healthcare Services for Children. Parental Responsibility, Young
Children and Healthcare Law, 46-80. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511494871.003
